The present invention relates to currency and document handling and counting devices and more particularly to a device of the above type having a novel stacker arrangement.
Currency and document handling and counting apparatus find wide-spread use such as, for example, in banks and other commercial as well as industrial establishments and in institutions wherein it is desired to count large stacks of sheets which may include, for example, coupons, bank checks, paper currency and the like. It is important to provide apparatus capable of accurately counting and stacking such sheets at high rates of speed, which sheets may be accurately counted even in light of the fact that they may be slightly or severely mutilated or creased.
It is also important to provide apparatus capable of performing functions beyond counting such as endorsing and/or cancelling documents such as checks, coupons and/or capable of examining paper currency for authenticity.
Apparatus presently available for accomplishing these objectives are described, for example, in the following U.S. patents:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,771,783 issued Nov. 13, 1973 discloses document handling and counting apparatus for receiving a stack of sheets, separating, counting and restacking said documents, and employing an outfeed stacker arranged in that the documents delivered thereto are further removed from the operator than the infeed stacker;
U.S. Pat. No. 3,912,255 issued Oct. 14, 1975 teaches document handling and counting apparatus substantially similar to that disclosed in the above-mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 3,771,783 and in which the outfeed stacker is modified to incorporate rotating fan-like wheel assemblies adapted to receive documents from cooperating acceleration means and deliver and stack the documents upon a swingable stacker plate, said documents being delivered to a stacker plate occupying an interior position within the apparatus which is further removed from the operator than the most conveniently located infeed stacker; and
U.S. application Ser. No. 618,280 filed Sept. 30, 1975, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,054,092, and directed to a stacker assembly for separating, counting and stacking documents, the outfeed stacker incorporating a swingably mounted stacker guide plate for directing sheets toward a stacking surface and somewhat loosely retaining the stacked sheets. In this apparatus, the guide plate must be lifted to remove the stack of sheets.
The above patent application and patents are assigned to the assignee of the present invention.
The first-mentioned U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,771,783 and 3,912,255, teach apparatus in which documents leaving the input tray are fed inwardly and downwardly where they are ultimately collected in the outfeed stacker.
Due to the fact that the stackers in the two last-mentioned U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,771,783 and 3,912,255 are arranged deeply within the apparatus interior, operators have generally expressed a fear of injury from the constantly rotating components incorporated in the apparatus and are quite reluctant to reach in and remove stacks of documents from the outfeed stacker.
In addition to the above negative comments, it is also important to provide the aforesaid apparatus with the capability of cancelling and/or endorsing documents such as checks and/or apparatus for examining documents, such as paper currency, for authenticity.
In the case of the above-mentioned copending patent application Ser. No. 618,280, it is inconvenient to utilize the outfeed stacker guide plate which, if lifted during a counting operation, will permit documents to be unnecessarily ejected from the apparatus.